6 Hilly Miles at Sharon Woods

Saturday we made a plan for me to be able to leave and run without the worries of leaving Harley-dog and her anxiety behind. It was great.

I worked all morning. At a good stopping point, I got dressed and drove to Sharon Woods for a couple hilly laps. It's about a 2.5 mile loop, so I figured I could do that, then a bit more and finish up no problem.

View from a flatter part of the trail. Across the pond is another side of the trail.

I started a "backwards" direction so I'd end up with the shorter loop option for that extra mile. Sharon Woods is hilly, but they are quick hills. It was interesting warming up on them. First mile was 11:06, but I didn't care. That was fine.

I began to get into a rhythm, just moving along, letting my legs stay loose on the downhills and just being steady on the uphills. I was listening to another Invisibilia podcast which really had my attention. So I was super relaxed and didn't even hear my breathing. But it was probably loud, going by how everyone moved over when I came up on them :)

Around 2.5 I turned around and headed the other way, facing the hills from a different direction. I'm not really sure if one way is easier or not. It just really feels rolling.

When I got to about 4.5, my podcast was over. I thought maybe I'd just tune into my body more for the last bit, but I was worried I'd psych myself out. The run was going so well, I didn't want my stupid mind getting in the way. So I quickly stopped to cue up the one song on my phone: "Survival" by Muse. I don't know what it is about that song, but I really really love it. I like how it builds, and it is about racing...so maybe that's why.

I hit repeat and took got moving. Unfortunately, the beat of the song is slightly slower than my foot pace. But it got me up some hills pretty nicely. I couldn't believe how quick my legs were moving.

Last mile was 9:36.

Woohooo!!!!! After 5 hills miles, I just chucked off a 9:36 pace...and it felt easy??

I think I have some serious evaluation to do with music, my pace, and how they all work together. Because I don't know what happened there, but I'm pretty certain I wouldn't have been able to do that without music. I just beat myself up way too much when all I have is my own mind to keep me company.

Splits:
11:01, 10:40, 10:48, 10:34, 10:39, 9:36.  Average was 10:33 for 6 hilly miles. I'm happy with that.